Kristin Hill Taylor

Seeking God as the Author of Every Story

  • Home
  • About
  • Books
    • Peace in the Process
    • Bringing Home More Than Groceries
  • Contact

Jesus’ Dirty Shirt

April 13, 2009 by Kristin Leave a Comment

We went with some people from our church to see “The Promise” at Trace Creek Baptist Church, which for you non-western Kentuckians is a large church in the middle of the country. We took Cate, thinking she’d be entertained by the songs, live donkey and live sheep. We were right. Plus she really loved the fish some of the disciples tossed from their boat onto the dock.

I should mention the program was 2 1/2 hours long. That’s well beyond a toddler’s typical attention span. We sat on the aisle, thinking we may have to get up and walking around with her; we never did.

What she kept talking about after it was over was Jesus. And how he had a “dirty shirt.”

Yes, his shirt was dirty after he was beaten and taken to be crucified. I guess even for a 23-month-old girl that was a stark contrast to the bright, white clothing he wore before that. Even after he rose from the dead, complete with a clean shirt, Cate still talked about Jesus and his dirty shirt.

I tried to tell her (multiple times) that when Jesus came back he was wearing a clean shirt. She thinks about it for a minute, repeats “clean,” then goes back to the “dirty shirt.” Truthfully, it’s pretty neat to hear her sweet voice say, “Jesus,” regardless of what he’s wearing.

But, you know, I’m thankful he wore a dirty shirt for me. And you. And Cate.

Bearing our sins did indeed dirty his shirt, but he did it so we could wear bright, white clothes. And he rose from the filth, this time wearing his clean clothes, so he could rejoin his Father and prepare a place for us. I’m certain he’s preparing a beautiful place where everything, even our shirts, will be cleaner than anything we can imagine.

As sweet as it was to hear Cate talk about Jesus, I’m looking forward to the day she understands the rest of the story and realizes the his dirty shirt was so very temporary.

  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • More
  • Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
  • Click to print (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)

Filed Under: Cate, faith, holiday, motherhood

Comments

  1. Teaque says

    April 13, 2009 at 9:42 pm

    the way you wrote this gave me chills – so well said. It actually sounded like something from a devotional book – wow! 🙂

    new topic – how is your sister doing?? AND did I see something about you all going to visit??

    Reply
  2. dustin says

    April 13, 2009 at 9:45 pm

    Thanks for posting this – awesome stuff.

    Reply
  3. Shelley says

    April 14, 2009 at 7:13 pm

    great post. so sweet that she sat still for so long!

    Reply
  4. Peggy says

    April 15, 2009 at 7:32 am

    A great ending to a great weekend!!!

    Reply
  5. Blink says

    April 15, 2009 at 3:22 pm

    That’s pretty amazing. I remember going to church as a child, sitting beneath the pew, and being bored out of my mind because I had no idea what was going or what this guy was talking about. Anytime you can involve children in the worship service it changes the whole dynamic for them! I was 12 when my little brother was born and I made it a point to make sure he didn’t experience church the same way I did. When he was old enough that he began to talk I would sit him on my lap, or next to me, and intersperse playing with his action figures and hot wheels with reiterating key words that the preacher would say. When it was time to sing, he would get up with everyone else and belt out anything he could muster that resembled the words to the song. The best part was when he finally began to pray out loud. He would say a prayer that thanked God for every item in whatever room he was standing in. He would roll down the visual checklist: “Thank you God for Momma and Daddy, Bubba, Jen, Keri, Arin, the food, the table, the plates, the forks, the knives, the spoons, the light bulbs, the light switches,” etc…

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Let’s Connect

  • Bloglovin
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • RSS
  • Twitter

About Me

Telling stories is my therapy and I love sharing them with friends on my porch.

The main characters in my stories are my entrepreneur husband, our high school girl who never forgets, our middle school boy who has no fear, and our joy-filled first-grade girl. As we live out our stories, we seek God as the author of them all.

Learn more about my story here.

Subscribe for Updates

Recent Posts

  • How to enjoy motherhood
  • How & why to travel with kids
  • From snow to sand
  • Books of 2022
  • How to enjoy winter days at home

Join the Conversation

Join the Conversation

On Instagram

I’ve had a couple of conversations this week wit I’ve had a couple of conversations this week with dear friends who are walking through hard things. I’ve been proud of them and sad about circumstances and weary of the brokenness and yet generally peaceful. 

Honestly, I feel like it’s a hard cycle to escape. Maybe I’m not supposed to. I never know how much of other’s burdens to carry. And how do I carry their burdens when my own feel heavy? 

I sat across the table at Panera with a dear friend who has tear-filled eyes, who has fasted and prayed and sought counsel. I hear another friend express her loneliness in subtle but deep ways. So many of my mom friends are in the trenches of anxiety, both within their kids and within themselves. I hear of tragedies and brokenness all around me. I feel all the pain, forget about mine for a moment, and want to fix it all.

Sometimes solutions are waiting and trusting. Sometimes action is exactly what’s needed. Knowing the difference is hard for me to discern. 

So I keep going. I do the things in front of that need to be done. I sit with my friend and send another text. I pray about them and about me. I hope I teach my kids enough about the right things. I try to rush less because then I miss what matters. 

Through it all, I am absolutely certain we are meant to walk through this life together. God created us to commune with him and one another. 

One afternoon this week we literally stopped on the country road. No cars were around and she wanted to take a picture. While she captures the landscape, I thanked God for a peaceful pause in a chaotic life and asked Him to continue to show His goodness. 

#livingfaithfully #choosingJOY #countryliving #momlife #faithlife #motherhood #createdforcommunion #PorchStories
The world feels heavy & broken because it is. Pare The world feels heavy & broken because it is. Parenting has me at my max emotional capacity because it takes much soul and mental work. Spring soccer season started in the cold tonight. 

Even so, God is good and wants us to live abundantly here on earth while we wait for heaven. This week that looks like church league basketball games, dinner with friends, apologies, sideline encouragement, prayers, middle school humor, theological conversations with friends, tears, and laughter. 

Now it’s time to rest and do it again tomorrow. These are the rhythms of grace and goodness, heaven and earth, sorrow and joy. 

#livingfaithfully #choosingJOY #soccermom #thirdchild #momlife #reallife #faithlife #PorchStories
I sat on my porch beneath a blanket and finished t I sat on my porch beneath a blanket and finished this book today. Yes, I’m fully invested in this Cuba saga involving the Perez family. “The Last Train to Key West” by @chanelcleeton is the third in the series. I have the fourth on hold at the library for pickup on Monday. 

I wasn’t sure I was going to love this one as much as I did Cleeton’s first two, but it was a slow-building story that turned stormy. I loved how the three women were in Key West for their own reasons, developed meaningful relationships as they navigated their lives, and managed to survive the storms of their lives and an actual hurricane. 

The historical fiction story offers hope:

“It’s strange how your life can change so quickly, how one moment you can barely eke by, desperation filling your days, and suddenly, out of the unimaginably horrific, a glimmer of something beautiful can appear like a bud pushing through the hard-formed earth. There’s so much broken around us; maybe all we can do is try to fix each other, do what we can to preserve these precious moments in a world where there is so much sadness and loss. … Maybe some would say my dreams are too small. Perhaps they would dream of railroads that go over the sea, great, wonderful things. Maybe others want riches and jewels, a chance to travel the globe. For me, this is enough: A corner of paradise in this wretched world that I am able to call my own.” — Helen in “The Last Train to Key West” by Chanel Cleeton

#KHTreads #bookstagram #booklover #librarybooks #historicalfiction #weekending #favoritethings #choosingJOY #bookquotes #bookreview
This morning there are three “holes” in Wright This morning there are three “holes” in Wright Road after the creek flooded it overnight. The Calloway County road department responded quickly and is working to pack in various kinds of gravel so it will passable again soon. I’m thankful for their work, but these Band-Aids aren’t an actual solution. 

Wright Road needs a permanent solution for when Wildcat Creek rises. A bridge seems to be the best idea, so the creek can rise and flow beneath the road rather than flowing across it and washing out the gravel on top of the culverts. 

I know it’s an expensive fix and would take local government working with state government, but I wonder how many times the road has to break before it can be truly repaired.

#callowaycounty #kyweather #kentuckyweather #countyroads #countryliving #reallife #murrayky
In a week filled with all the parenting emotions, In a week filled with all the parenting emotions, God has provided conversation with friends who understand, new mercies, a few walks and talks with a friend, and cinnamon rolls on a rainy Friday afternoon. I’ve been reminded when we are vulnerable and share our real lives, friends bring truth and goodness — often in ways we don’t expect but bless us anyway. 

#bettertogether #createdforcommunion #reallife #momlife #weekending #parenthood #choosingJOY #favoritethings #livingfaithfully
People ask when I have time to write. The truth is People ask when I have time to write. The truth is I like to make time to write, but sometimes it happens in the cracks of my days — at Panera, in the Notes app on my phone, at the library before I pickup my kids, or while I’m waiting on kids at activities. This week I edited my manuscript while Rachel practiced soccer. 

#momlife #writerlife #selfpublished #bloggerlife #authorlife #soccermom #thirdchild #createdforcommunion #bettertogether #favoritethings
I needed this weekend. The UK Wildcats didn’t I needed this weekend. 

The UK Wildcats didn’t win this afternoon like I had hoped. But following our house full of people on Friday night, I’ve spent a lot of time on my couch, under a soft blanket, with a book, while I watch #MarchMadness. 

Yesterday I pulled “When We Left Cuba” by @chanelcleeton from my to-be-read stack and then realized it was the second in a series about the Perez family. Thanks to @libby.app, I was able to get “Next Year in Havana” immediately. 

I finished it today during commercials and timeouts. And now I’m going to start “When We Left Cuba” as another basketball game also gets going. 

#KHTreads #basketballseason #weekending #bookstagram #reallife #booklover #librarybooks #KindleOasis #Kindlebooks #favoritethings
What a fun night! Basketball is best with friends What a fun night! Basketball is best with friends and food. So thankful for all these provisions and others in my life. Oh and a Cats win is icing on the cake. 

#MarchMadness #weekending #basketballseason #bettertogether #choosingJOY #BigBlueNation
You know it’s #MarchMadness when Greg Taylor pos You know it’s #MarchMadness when Greg Taylor posts on Facebook — and a picture at that! — and puts his radio/TV degree to work figuring out how to improve the viewing setup. 

#reallife #basketballseason #wifelife #choosingJOY
Load More... Follow on Instagram

Favorites

Categories

Archives

Copyright © 2023 Kristin Hill Taylor | Design by Traci Michele | Development by MRM